Once shunned by coach, FIU’s Reggie Peterson earns trust on Panthers’ defense
It’s not a good sign when a coach who is supposedly recruiting you shuts down your texts and calls.
But that’s what happened to FIU linebacker Reggie Peterson in the summer of 2020.
Peterson, who played for Centennial High in Fort Pierce, had been texting newly-hired North Carolina linebackers coach Jovan Dewitt before the worst happened.
“I was trying to get an offer from UNC,” Peterson explained last week at Conference USA’s Media Day. “One day, he blocked me.”
Peterson, who had no suitable Division I scholarship offers, got the message and settled for a walk-on opportunity at FIU.
Not surprisingly given his walk-on status, Peterson didn’t play at all in 2020. He then made just five tackles in 2021.
Prior to the start of the 2022 season, Peterson got what he perceived as awful news. Dewitt, the coach who blocked Peterson’s calls, was hired as FIU’s defensive coordinator in January of 2022.
Uh-oh.
“I thought, ‘I must have the worst luck,’” Peterson said. “But I said, ‘Let’s see how this works out.’”
Spoiler alert: It has worked out really well for Peterson, Dewitt and FIU – but not initially.
Early in that 2022 season, Peterson was serving as the captain of FIU’s special teams … but Dewitt wasn’t playing him at all on defense.
“One day, I went to Coach Dewitt’s office, and I said: What am I doing wrong not to play?’
“He said: ‘You play just like the starter. Why would I play you? You need to do something different.’’’
The next week – Nov. 5, 2022 at North Texas – Peterson answered his coach’s request. He finally got in on defense and intercepted a pass, racing 75 yards before fumbling. However, teammate Adrian Cole scooped up the loose ball and ran the final four yards for a touchdown.
“I earned Coach Dewitt’s respect,” Peterson said. “I had told him: Somehow, some way, I’m going to make you play me.’
“I’m not a bad guy. I show up first. I’m the last to leave. I just needed to make him trust me.”
That trust is now fully there.
In the week following North Texas, Peterson posted a season-high 11 tackles.
Last year, Peterson started all 12 games, posting 104 tackles. That ranks 10th in FIU history for most single-season stops.
He also had a season-high-tying 13 tackles against Arkansas last year, showing that Peterson won’t shy away from elevated competition, including the much-hyped SEC.
FIU coach Mike MacIntyre said Peterson has a “unique” story. After all, two national magazines – Athlon and Phil Steele – have named him a Conference USA preseason first-team all-league player.
In addition, MacIntyre also raved about his entire team, which is coming off consecutive 4-8 seasons in the coach’s first two years with the Panthers.
“We feel this is a team that can take the next step,” MacIntyre said. “It’s not just words. We have a mature team, and that – along with the continuity of our coaching staff -- makes a big difference.”
THIS AND THAT
▪ Defending C-USA champ Liberty has been predicted to win the league again this year, according to a panel of 20 media members. Liberty got 18 of the 20 first-place votes. Western Kentucky, predicted to finish second, received the other two first-place votes.
▪ FIU has been predicted to finish eighth among the league’s 10 teams.